Last month I composed a short
essay
detailing what I consider the “Exploration” game or “Zen Garden” game. When I
composed that essay, I had a few titles in mind that I considered the seminal
titles of this genre.

1. Ico

Ico came out for the Playstation2 in 2001 and it, and along with Shadow of
the Colssus has recently been re-released with a graphics upgrade for the
Playstation3. Ico is ultimately an adventure-puzzle game with a light mixture of
combat elements. The game is played from the perspective of Ico, a horned boy
who is imprisoned in a gargantuan tower. After freeing himself from his
immediate cell, he meets Yorda, a magic girl who unlocks the massive stone
doorways that block Ico’s escape from his jail.

The game play focuses on the difficulties of navigating the collapsing tower.
Ico can climb, jump, and fight. Yorda can open the doors, but otherwise must be
led by the hand through each level, and helped up walls. On top of that, if she
is abandoned for too long shadows creep up from the ground and try to make off
with her.

Since the puzzles themselves focus to heavily upon the environment of the game,
the tower is very lushly illustrated with hanging ropes, rotting wooden
buttresses, and bridges that stretch over blue watery coast. The player must
spend his time examining the space, moving through it, and puzzling over how the
space can be surmounted.

2. Shadow of the Colossus

This brilliant title by the same studio responsible for Ico is oft cited as
an excellent example of how video games could be elevated to an refined art
form.

Shadow of the Colossus takes the adventure game and simplifies it
down to one aspect: boss battles. The game plays through sixteen battles with
the hulking colossus – gargantuan roaming creatures who each present a unique
and puzzling challenge to overcome. Yet, to reach each of the colossus the
protagonist must first journey on horseback through an empty, expansive
wilderness. The land is covered in toppled ruins, lush forests, and flowing
steams. The colossus themselves are often gentle creatures and their deaths are
pathos laden affairs that hint at a less than virtuous conquest.

Like Ico, SotC is a puzzle game merged with the real-time over-the-shoulder
elements of the action-adventure genre. It’s elevated into the realm of
exploration by both its lavish detail to the landscape and it’s atmospheric
emphasis.

3. The Legend of Zelda, Link’s Awakening

I must sadly admit, I never completed Link to the Past and so I must put forth
Link’s Awakening as the best of the Legend of Zelda 2D iterations. The Link
to the Past is the definitive exploration game. The world begins first with
Link awakening on a small island where he is confined to a small space by
the necessity of finding the tools (sword, bow, shield, &c) that will open up
more of the island. The game is riddled with little mini-games, sidequests, and
clever level design that fits together like a massive puzzle.

Like Link to the Past and the original Zelda, Link’s Awakening plays from
an isometric perspective. Link runs about in real-time, and unlike the
traditional J-RPG, combat takes place in the over world through sword swings,
arrows, and shield blocks. The other item that makes Link’s Awakening stand
out over the J-RPG is the attention to detail. The realm is very lush, precisely
arranged with deep care. The action-adventure game play removes the elements of
grinding that have come to dominate the RPG genre.

4. Okami

I saw Okami in 2004 at E3 and it was easily the best title on the show
floor. Okami builds on the action-adventure elements of Ocarina of Time
– 3D adventure title with real-time combat, item collection, clever dungeon
puzzles, big boss battles, and an amusing combat system. Then it adds some new
spices to the mix such as a creative Ukiyo-e look, J-RPG styled combat zones,
and a healthy heaping of traditional Japanese myth. This creates a game that in
every way embodies the idea of world exploration found in the Zelda series but
also sets it apart with a much more mature tone and unique setting that defines
Okami as a distinctive story-space from Zelda. It isn’t just aping
it’s predecessor’s gameplay, it is attempting to refine it into new form.

About

Joseph Hallenbeck attended the RTIS program at DigiPen Institute of Technology, studied Victorian-era literature at the University of Oxford, and graduated from Augustana University in Sioux Falls, SD with a B.A. in Philosophy and English Literature. He has worked as an interpretive ranger, naturalist, and caver for the National Park Service and is now employed as a Software Engineer at Research Square in Durham, NC.